The appeals court ruled Friday that detectives had failed to advise Senseman of his Miranda rights before questioning him about the girl's death.

The judge in Senseman's trial denied a defense request to suppress his statements to detectives.

Senseman said he found the girl lying limp in her playpen after he awoke from a nap. Only he and his 2-year-old son were home at the time, and his wife, Laura, was at work.

The girl could not be revived, and an autopsy showed she died from blunt-force head trauma and had several broken bones that were in the process of healing.

Investigators told Senseman of these findings after calling him in for questioning, and they said Senseman speculated that he might have pushed the baby's head into the playpen or handled her too roughly.

He made a written statement before detectives told him that he was under no obligation to answer their questions.

The appeals court ruled that the questioning had been "hostile, intimidating and coercive," and the panel said detectives never told him he was free to leave.

"After reviewing the police interview, we are persuaded that Senseman was indeed coerced," the panel wrote. "He was in a vulnerable state of mind, returning home from arranging the funeral of his infant daughter. He revealed in his statement that he felt guilty because his attempt to render CPR had failed. He repeatedly hung his head, wringing it in anguish."

The panel also found that detectives had claimed "the science is 100 percent" in showing that Senseman had caused the child's death, although they offered no evidence to support the claim and instead referred to the television show "CSI."

Senseman's wife was also charged in the girl's death, but a jury acquitted her.

Defense attorneys for the couple claimed the couple's son might have caused his sister's injuries, and the appeals court noted that multiple witnesses testified that the boy was a "very strong and rambunctious 2-year-old."

Detectives admitted that they ended their investigation after Senseman confessed to causing the girl's injuries.

The appeals court ordered a new trial be held for Senseman, but no date has been set.

WLWT spoke with Senseman's wife and family, who said they are relieved and hope his name will be cleared. However, they said they understand the decision is only a step in the appeals process and more questions remain.

The family's neighbors said they were amazed at the conviction. Residents of Hebron's Princess Court community said they often saw Senseman with his children.

"We all liked him," neighbor Donna Cooper said. "(He was) very loving, very patient. … He was very much a neighbor as far as the other children in the neighborhood were concerned."

The family's pastor said Senseman was a "wonderful father.

"When Chloe was born, Ben was beaming and grinning from ear to ear. He was thrilled to death that he was a father again," the Rev. Dana Stout said.

The pastor is supporting the family's appeal.

"We just really feel like there's been a big mistake made here," Stout said.

The reversal was not a unanimous decision by all of the appeals court judges.

Prosecutors now have 20 to 30 days to file papers to contest the ruling. If they do contest the ruling, it would go to the Supreme Court. If they do not, a retrial would have to be scheduled.